Rick Tocchet is in the final year of his head coaching contract with the Canucks, and a new report suggests the Vancouver media is really wearing him down lately. Canucks insider Rick Dhaliwal has raised an eyebrow over increasing media heat against head coach Rick Tocchet, particularly while <a href='https://athlonsports.com/nhl/vancouver-canucks/canucks-coach-might-not-execute-contract-extension-option-report' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>his contract talks are still unresolved.</a> <h3>Tocchet is dealing with sharp criticism</h3> Tocchet is in the final year of his deal with a 2025-26 option but no extension was inked. On Sportsnet 590, Dhaliwal reported the sharp criticism against Tocchet, particularly if one looks at the team's performance this season. He doesn't have an extension, Dhaliwal said. You would think, after winning the Coach of the Year last year, he'd strike while the iron is hot. But nothing happened in the summer regarding an extension, and now we're down to the last 18 games. <a href='https://x.com/DhaliwalSports' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>As Dhaliwal writes</a>, Tocchet has had no cakewalk of it the last year, dealing with player scandals, nonstop media coverage, and attempting to lead a team into the playoffs. He's had to babysit the Miller-Pettersson feud. He's dealing with the media constantly being all over him. And if this team doesn't make the playoffs, what's going to happen then? - Rick Dhaliwal <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/Sportsnet/status/1885541794932302304'> </a></blockquote></div> He continued to explain that although the Canucks are currently brokering an extension for Tocchet's contract, the coach would consider whatever decision he chose to make from a wide array of circumstances, including how the team performed and his own assessment of the situation. But the media is getting to Tocchet. It really is. The other night, he said, 'You guys can stir it up all you want.' Then he said, 'Some guys try and cause crap all the time. Some guys try and cause problems.' I think, for Rick Tocchet, it's been a really trying year. - Rick Dhaliwal <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/FAN590/status/1899936928222294337'> </a></blockquote></div> In January, General Manager Patrick Allvin was optimistic about Tochet's future with the team in the long run. In January 2023, the team appointed Tocchet as their head coach to succeed Bruce Boudreau.